ECOLOGIES



OBJECT OF ECOLOGIES: The object of Ecologies is to be the first player to earn 12 Victory Points.

NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 1 to 6 players

MATERIALS: 21 Biome Cards, 10 Factor Cards, 77 Organism Cards, 1 Small Booklet, and 1 Card Box

TYPE OF GAME: Strategy Card Game

AUDIENCE: 12+


OVERVIEW OF ECOLOGIES

Ecologies is an awesome, educational game that allows for each player to build their own in-depth ecosystem. These systems are sensitive, and one wrong move can cause the whole thing to crumble, losing all the points associated with it. 

As each player chooses their Biome and Organisms to inhabit it, they will build their own food webs, learn about scientific interactions that occur throughout an ecosystem, and learn how quickly those may be disturbed. Dive in, create your own small world, and ty your best to protect it!

SETUP

To begin setup, the deck should be shuffled, and each player should receive 7 cards to begin their hand. After all players have been dealt the appropriate number of cards, the deck will be placed face down in the center of the group to create the main deck. The game is ready to begin!

GAMEPLAY

The first player of the game is chosen by the group, there is no specific rule for this. The player will then take their turn in four distinct steps. The same pattern must be completed with each play for each player.

First, the player will Draw 2 cards from the deck. Next, the player has the option to trade cards with the other players. There are no restrictions on trade, as long as the card comes from the players’ hand and not active cards on the table. After trading, a player may play up to two cards. Playing any type of card counts towards those two. 

The last move a player can make during their turn is to purchase cards. Cards may be purchased from the main deck one card for four cards in their hand. Players may also destroy a ten card ecology to earn three new cards. This step is optional, and a player may opt to pass this step and finish their turn.

The first card a player must play is a Biome Card. This card will set the base for what types of cards may feed into the Ecology. Only one Biome Card is needed per Ecology. Each Biome Card is dictated by its own color and abbreviation. Biomes give healthy ecology bonuses when five specific roles have been filled within the food web.

After a Biome Card has been played, organism cards may start to build the food web and Ecology. After the Biome Card, a Producer Card must be played. These two cards will create the foundation in which the entire food web will sit. Each card played into a Biome must match the Biome’s color and abbreviation , or else it will not survive! 

After the chosen number of Producers have been played, additional organisms may be added to the Ecology. The second row will be reserved for C1 cards or SD cards. The third row will be reserved for C2 cards. The fourth row will be reserved for C3 cards, and anything above will be C4 cards.

The C cards, or consumer cards, do not have to be placed immediately over their food source, as one food source may effectively support numerous other organisms. The textbox on the card will show what it eats and what it is eaten by, so an effective food web can be created. 

Factor cards may also be played throughout the game. These cards may benefit or severely farm the Ecology players have worked so hard to build! These may be played at any point throughout the game, and the rules must be followed.

Players may move their organism cards around their food web during their turn. Producers can never be moved, but cards that have numerous roles may be shifted. This must be done carefully, as a whole food web can collapse if something drastic changes. If a card is without a food source, it must be discarded. 

If the Producer card is destroyed, all cards above it must be discarded unless they can move to another viable Biome that the player has created. Biome cards each have their own bonus associated with it. These bonuses may be fulfilled when there are cards in each of the five roles.

The game ends when a player reaches 12 points or when there are no more cards to draw from. The first player to win 12 points wins the game!

END OF GAME

The game ends when a player reaches 12 points or when all cards have been drawn and all players have completed a round in which no one played a card. At this point, the player with the most points is the winner! The first player to reach 12 points is the winner in any other scenario.

Nakoa Davis